So...whats for dinner?

No cooking yesterday since a friend brought me a huge broccoli salad from Chicken Salad Chick. Boy those are delicious. Time to get serious with fresh asparagus, zucchini, tomatoes & spinach before they turn. And what I really want is a pizza... Sigh.

Can't remember who posted the artichoke & orzo recipe and this site is too slow to go back & look - but THANKS. I used Jarlsberg instead of Parm because that's what I had. Nice consistency & a mellow combination. I would likely add garlic next time to make it a bit more 'authoritative'.

Special - so I sauteed the zucchini & onions & garlic & tossed in a couple of tomatoes. Then what did your Mom do? I put the mixture in a pyrex dish & topped with Panko and then shredded cheese. Again - Jarlsberg because I was trying to use up the last of the HUGE old Costco piece. I'll bake it long enough this weekend to warm & melt the cheese.

I'm trying to use up fresh veggies today. I also I made a potato salad w/celery, onions, hard boiled eggs, dill, and mayo & sour cream. I'm not a fan of mustard potato salad. And I sliced English cucumbers & sweet onions, added dill & sour cream and that's marinating. And I parboiled a couple of the bigger potatoes to bake Hasselback Potatoes later this week with butter & rosemary.

Off topic - I HATE my new hearing aids. They won't even stay in my ears of I yawn or swallow. If I pee it sounds like Niagra Falls and the A/C sounds like I'm next to a jet engine on the runway. Frustrating tears earlier today before I yanked them out. I'll try again tomorrow.

Edited because I forgot to add the large bowl of guacamole I made..

Minus, you created your own buffet with all that food!

Goldie, the guys weren't prepared to camp out at the rendezvous this time, so we're just here for the afternoon and not cooking.

I use quinoa as a side like rice, often adding some seasoning and garlic and really like it with roasted pork tenderloin. I've used it in bowls too with chickpeas, red onion, cucumber.

Dinner tonight will be easy RV food, a rotisserie chicken and a bag of Cesar salad.

Illi, when I was in law school my best buddy & I would go out to the dump at Brown's Point just north of Tacoma and shoot pellet guns and .357 Magnums. (Even loaded my own bullets back then). We 'killed" discarded refrigerators, cardboard wardrobe cartons, and cereal boxes. (Don't wanna boast, but Tony the Tiger is singing soprano now). My nickname was "Dirty Harriet." Fast-forward 25 years--we were at a resort in Goodyear (outside Phoenix) for a pacemaker-review course. In the afternoon, we all piled into Jeeps for a tour of the Sonoran desert, led by an Italian spaghetti-western extra. Part of the tour was a shooting lesson: he had set up pyramids of soda-pop cans atop rocks. I watched person after person miss consistently, because they were shooting one-handed and aiming at the centers of the cans. I remembered my law school experience, took a three-point stance, and aimed the sights at the bottom of the cans. I went 3-for-3. "Any questions?" I asked. Gordy looked at me and whispered "I'll keep my room clean, Mom, I promise."

Bob walked to Beard & Belly and brought back quiche and salad. (I discarded the crust--I am back on near-keto, to get my glucose down and slam the brakes on, if not actually reverse, the weight re-gain. New Orleans & then Passover took their toll).

So today was nice and warm (albeit very windy--this is Chicago, where unseasonable warmth always comes at a price). We decided it was a great evening to drive north to Winnetka and try Avli, which came highly recommended by keywestfan. Lovely drive, but had to park 2 blocks away.

We ordered a large Greek salad to share, flaming saganaki appetizer, shared entrees of grilled branzino (dandelion greens as a side) and beef skewers with Greek rice as the side, per the menu. Bitterly disappointed with the service--took 20 minutes for the wine (Greek sparkling rose) to arrive. (Bob reports the bread was great, but I couldn't avail myself of it so I was getting rather hangry). Waiter then returned after another 15 minutes and took our order...and 30 min. later, ALL the dishes arrived SIMULTANEOUSLY!

The salad was nothing to write home about (just barely dressed tomato wedges, half-discs of cucumber, a few red onion slices, three little cubes--!!!--of feta and a few olives). We had to ask for actual dinner plates, as they apparently expected us to use our little bread plates for everything. We decided to eat in the sequence we'd ordered, so the waiter flamed our saganaki so we could at least eat it while it was still hot. He fileted the branzino but left several large bones and took away the skin (the best part of a grilled fish, IMHO). Both the fish & the dandelion greens were completely bland--desperately needed lemon & olive oil (and of course salt). The beef skewers came not with the promised rice (for Bob) but steamed spinach. The spinach was also bland, the beef was a bit over-salted as well as dry & tough (couldn't slide the chunks off the skewers and by then, ice-cold). Bob doesn't like to make a fuss, and we had waited quite long for our food, so I kept my frustration to myself. (I passive-aggressively told Bob that under the circumstances, figuring out the tip was his job, not mine, tonight).

The place was packed, because tonight was the first true patio-friendly weather of the season (we ate indoors because our reservation option on Tock didn't include a choice of indoor or patio)--but IMHO restaurants have no business booking more tables than they have staff (front of house or kitchen) to competently handle them. Our waiter was obviously inexperienced--a good waiter wouldn't have put all the dishes in on a single ticket without specifying appetizer vs. entree. He also took Bob's order for a red wine to go with the beef...and promptly forgot. (We had to remind him 15 minutes later, and at least he comped us the glass), If we go back to an Avli it'll be either the one in River North or at Millennium Park. Ever since emerging from the pandemic, the North Shore seems to have lost much if not most of its fine dining options, so Avli doesn't have much competition for butts-in-seats.

Next time we want Greek, we'll either go back to Barbi Yianni in Lincoln Square (and hope we can park nearby, as spaces are limited), revisit Grecian Psisteria in Lincolnwood (they have a valet) or a reopened (under new management) place in (what's left of) Greektown, Athena. There's always Greek Islands, but that's sort of a cliche (although now that the tourists have deserted Greektown it's no longer hokey). Our fave, Santorini, closed down just before the pandemic and the building was finally razed this past Feb. Parthenon (both Greektown & Devon Ave), Diana's Opaa, Pegasus, Roditys, and (further north) Papagus...all gone. (Is there even a Greek community in the neighborhood any more? A bit far for UIC students to walk; and it looks like it's gentrifying--at least from all the new rental bldgs., supermarkets, clinics & dispensaries--like crazy now that the S. Loop and W. Loop/Fulton Mkt/ River North have become even less affordable than they were pre-pandemic).

Tomorrow morning, matzo brei for Bob and keto French toast (same egg batter) for me. Dinner at Fogo de Chao--Bob loves the place, I can stay keto but can never eat my money's worth at these all-you-can-eat churrascarias.

Goldie, my tent camping days are long gone, I’m RV only now, I need the comfort of the bed and convenience of the toilet.

Sandy, great story, way to go dirty Harriet.

We’re heading back to Houston today to finish clearing out, dinner with be whatever sounds goods on the road.

Oops,Sandy, sorry about Avli. Don't believe it was a typical experience- maybe for a hot Saturday night, but it should not have happened. Pomeroy in Winnetka is very good, though noisy, filled with thin, young, long - legged blondes. Wonderful onion soup. Quite a few of the servers worked at Mon Ami Gabi. Also 501Local in Winnetka. Casual, very good fish,pasta- not that I ate either, sticking with beautiful prepared, unusual looking vegetarian spring rolls and an equally inventive beet salad, which seems to be on every menu, but this was more inventive

Sadly, there's a difference between "not making a fuss" and being taken advantage of. I am less tolerant of the latter the older I get, especially when there's no excuse for it. Bob has never liked to make waves, even when it came to his own healthcare (with near-disastrous results back in 2015, when he let his colonoscopy-perforated colon get "medically managed" to the point of life-threatening before he finally asked for surgery). A couple of days after the wedding, he started getting the big D (though neither I nor the guests did). After 2 weeks, I told him that this is not normal and that he should see a GI specialist. He replied as to how hard it is to get a timely appointment. I replied he need to pull rank as a doctor. He admitted he never even set up a patient portal account at his hospital systems--I went online and did it for him. He finally did call a colleague who's a gastro--who saw him the next day and diagnosed a bacterial overgrowth that sometimes affects hemi-colectomy patients even years later. He's finally taking an antibiotic & eating yogurt per the gastro's advice; getting him to take a probiotic, much less schedule the second booster for which he's now eligible, is something else altogether. If it's not his or a treating physician's express idea, it's not gonna happen.

Bob's gastro says that techniques and safety have drastically improved since 2015 (and this June he'll get his colonoscopy inside an actual hospital of which he's on staff--rather than the freestanding "endoscopy mill" which didn't monitor him for pain and simply sent him home to endure the agony after the anesthesia & Versed wore off). Back then, they used air to dilate the colon, which made it easier for the curette to penetrate the inner bowel wall into the mesentary with the blast of air "propelling" it all the way through the mesentary into the abdominal cavity. Nowadays, they use CO2, which is absorbed quickly--if the inner wall gets breached to the mesentary (still an extremely rare 2-in-1000 event), the CO2 gets absorbed before it can "propel" the curette any further, ergo, no perforation; the wall heals on its own and the patient gets a prophylactic short course of an antibiotic.

Bob was due for a followup scope in 2016 & 2019 but has understandably been skittish about it. I'm not due for mine until 2027, by which time it'll have been my last (assuming I'm still alive) because they no longer routinely scope patients older than 75 with no history of polyps.

Due to Bob's polyp history (starting in 2011), Gordy should at least get a Cologuard--he'll be 38 in Oct.

Here are some photos of the wedding (the few I managed to take--the videos have goofs I can't edit out):

And this is me at brunch the next day, shot by Leslie (old-school, on 35mm):

When the photographer uploads her shots (& video of the ceremony) to Gordy & Leslie, they'll send them to me and I'll post more.

Minus - I posted the for orzo and asparagus. Is that the one you're talking about? If so I’m glad you liked it

Great pictures Sandy. You look mahvelous and Gordy looks very much like you.

Tonight is a chef's salad. Last night was beef enchiladas. I usually only make chicken so this is the first time for ground beef. Pretty good!

Carole - I laughed at your comment about what's for dinner every night. I just saw a meme about adulthood meaning that you had to figure out what's for dinner every single night until you die

Hi all

Sandy what a horrible experience for Bob with the colonoscopy.

Wallycat I wish someone had told me that Breast and Colon cancers where sister cancers years ago. I had breast cancer in 2012 and bowel in 2015 stage 4, have it for life. I've never heard of that before but have noticed on a facebook bowel cancer page I'm on that a few women have had both like me. I've found that different cancer departments don't communicate with each other.

It is a public holiday today for ANZAC day. When Australia and New Zealand remember all the soldiers.

Rain and storm nearly here at the moment, can hear the wind picking up. It's going to rain the next few days.

Have made soup again and had spaghetti bog, chips and gravy for lunch, yum. I'm just watching Masterchef and all the great meals they make.

Aussie, many docs dismiss the connection. I did my research and requested the colonoscopies. I'm still anxious for this one because it will be 10 years and in my gut (ha, pardon the pun) I feel I should have done it every 5 years...I guess we'll see. I am sorry for your situation.

The cake was white cake with Italian meringue frosting, with raspberry puree and Southern coconut between the layers.

Yesterday for brunch I made matzo brei for Bob and keto French toast for me. Dinner was at Fogo de Chao. Salad ("Market") bar (the usual greens & grilled veg plus a small slice each of Manchego, prosciutto, and lox). Meats included slices of top sirloin, bone-in ribeye, pork tenderloin, lamb loin, a pork rib and two double baby lamb chops, plus a chunk of grilled "bread cheese." Had to only stare at the free sides of mashed spuds, fried polenta sticks, caramelized bananas and cheese biscuits. Bob wouldn't touch them either--he wasn't into carbs yesterday. As we were leaving, we noticed one table had left over HALF their shrimp cocktail--six shrimp for $24. I was so tempted to trade my carbs for their shrimp...

Today I'm about to make an omelet with Saturday night's leftover spinach, plus a couple of mushrooms and a slice of Swiss. Had planned to make keto avocado toast, but my low-carb/hi-fiber bread got moldy over Passover--hadn't even opened the bag containing it. Had to throw the whole thing away, as bread mold spores permeate the entire loaf, even if individual slices look okay. Not gonna replace it till tomorrow, since WF & the other stores that carry it (Z-Best/Today's Temptations) get their deliveries on Tuesdays.

Tonight, will have the leftover Greek salad (will pit the olives and add some feta to the two measly chunks), simmer the bland dandelion greens with salt, olive oil, garlic slices and lemon wedges, and stir-fry the beef kebab chunks (slicing them thin) with peppers.

Raspberry with coconut...that sounds incredible! I can't stop looking at that cake! May the newlyweds have many, many wonderful years ahead of them! Mazel Tov!

Goldie, the tent was in the primitive area, which must be authentic to the 1800’s (canvas, sticks, etc). There’s another area for modern tents and RV’s, which is where I’ll stay with the pups when this resumes on its usual schedule in the fall.

No grocery shopping ahead of the move, just clearing the fridge and pantry now. Lucky me, I had the makings forbagel pizzas.